


Emotional Eating

by canary_blues



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-07
Updated: 2013-08-08
Packaged: 2017-12-22 18:19:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/916489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canary_blues/pseuds/canary_blues
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>ROTG meme fill: Chocolate keeps Bunny normal. And by normal, I mean the tall, awesome warrior rabbit in the movie. </p><p>I read through book 2 of Guardians of Childhood, and basically, he goes warrior mode when he eats chocolate. In the book, he hadn't eaten chocolate in centuries (or so) so he was this logical, quiet, and just a tad annoyingly proper jedi master type, and when he DID eat chocolate, he became more emotional and war-like. </p><p>SO what if he stopped eating chocolate for a certain period of time (a few days?) and returned to his jedi master form--which is frankly, annoying for normal emotional illogical humans like Jack (used to be). </p><p>Anything goes :3</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. There's a mystery afoot.

Before Jack joined them it wasn't unusual for them to go years without seeing one another and it never really bothered them. But now they have Jack dropping in at any and all times (just because he can) so they at the very least get updates more often. So Tooth isn't surprised when Jack bursts into her palace. She is surprised by the look of panic on his face.

“Something's wrong with Bunny!”

“What?”

“Something's wrong with him!” He's tugging at her, trying to get her to follow him. “I think he's sick.”

“Bunny doesn't get sick.” She clasps his hands. “Take a deep breath, tell me what happened.”

“I went down to the Warren and when I saw him he's acting all weird and talking funny and he's wearing a coat and he won't stop talking about eggs!”

Tooth stares at him for a long moment before she bursts into laughter. Jack looks terribly offended.

“No, no. I'm not laughing at you.” She wheezes and most of the fairies are giggling themselves. “He just hasn't eaten any chocolate lately.”

Jack is looking at her like she's crazy. “What?”

“Chocolate changes how Pooka act. Its not a big deal or anything.” Tooth takes a deep breath and grins. “I forgot that you hadn't seen him without chocolate before.”

“But why is he so focused on eggs?”

“Its a Pooka thing.” She pats his shoulder. “I don't understand it either.”

“Why didn't he eat any chocolate?”

She shrugs. “I think its like a detox or something. I never really asked.”

And then Jack sets his shoulders and gets that determined look that tells her he's going to get to the bottom of this. Its endearing really, his love of mysteries.

Tooth just hopes this doesn't lead to trouble like the Snow Goose Incident.


	2. Is it cruel is there's no malicious intent?

When he returns to the Warren he can't find Bunny at first. He's not in the main chamber and Jack gets lost in the tunnels too easily to just pick one at random but the wind is more than willing to point him in the right direction. 

He finds Bunny in a room he hasn't seen before that's filled entirely with eggs of all sizes and colors. “Oh wow.”

Bunny doesn't look up from the eggs he's doing...something with. “You're back.”

“Yeah.” Jack leans closer to look at a particularly large, sea green egg with grayish speckles. “What's this?”

“Sea serpent. Don't touch it.” Jack pouts but lets his hand drop. “Do you need something?”

“No, just wanted to know if you wanted some company.”

“No. Thank you.” The thank you is tacked on as an afterthought.

“Bunny, can I-”

“Bunnymund.”

“What?”

“My name is Bunnymund, not Bunny.” He adjusts a dial on the strange device he's using. 

Jack stares at his back disbelievingly. “O...kay? Can I-”

“No.” Bunnymund still isn't looking at him. “If you insist on staying then don't touch anything.”

He glares at him and briefly considers freezing the weird machine being used before lifting off the ground and crossing his legs. Its a waiting game now, to see who breaks the silence first and Jack very quickly realizes how boring whatever Bunny is doing is.

“Can I ask you something?”

“If you feel you absolutely must.” Bunny's voice is flat and toneless. 

“Tooth said you get like this when you don't eat chocolate, so why haven't you had any?”

“As this is my natural state I cannot 'get like this'. My altered state, which you are more used to, is too emotional and its tiring to stay that way.”

Jack frowns. “If chocolate does weird things to you why do you make it?”

“It has its uses.”

It was the most vague non-answer Bunny had ever given him. Which was impressive given that he seemed to thrive on giving Jack riddles and mystic sounding bullshit as answers to everything.

“Right.” Jack taps his staff against the nearest table and watches frost swirl up the leg. “So what gives? Like a detox thing?”

“Sometimes its best to not let your emotions control you.” Bunnymund sniffs imperiously. “Something you wouldn't know anything about.”

Jack bristles like an angry cat. “Excuse me?”

“Its not your fault, its a common failing amongst humans.”

“I don't think feelings are a bad thing.”

“Perhaps not. But when you let them control you it gets rather inconvenient for the rest of us.”

“Feelings are not inconvenient.”

“Really?” Bunnymund turns towards him and Jack never quite realized how tall he was before. “There's never been any instance when you wished you didn't feel anything? In the 300 years you were invisible you never wished you didn't feel the loneliness?”

“Stop it.”

“Didn't you want to escape the crushing despair of knowing you were the only one of your kind? That whatever happens you're the only one and that you. Don't. Matter.”

Jack swings his staff before he makes the conscious decision. Bunnymund catches it easily and raises an eyebrow at him.

“That anger is going to get you in trouble one day.” Jack grits his teeth and jerks the staff away before turning and rushing out of the Warren.


	3. Strained silences lead to stilted words.

Jack doesn't go back to the Warren for over a month. The only reason he even sees Bunny is because there's a trimonthly Guardians meeting held on Sandy's island that everyone is required to attend. Its going as well as it can when Jack is curled up in a corner with his hood pulled down over his eyes and Bunny is still off chocolate.

“And so now we wrap up very uncomfortable meeting.” North claps his hands together. “Good job, everyone. See you in three months.”

Jack is in the air and out of sight faster than Bunny can open one of his portals. Tooth elbows North hard in the ribs and glares at him until he sighs.

“So Bunnymund, we were wondering what you said to Jack.”

“Nothing that concerns you.”

“Ah, well, see that is where you are wrong. Jack is young, yes? And he is impressionable, especially by you.”

“Why should I be any different?”

The other three Guardians share a look and Tooth clears her throat. “He's uh, sort of got a...crush on you.”

There's a moment of semi-awkward silence before Bunnymund speaks. “Oh.”

“Yes. So you see why we worry about what you said.”

There's another beat of silence. “I think I need some chocolate.”

“I think that is good idea.” 

Bunnymund vanishes down a tunnel and races to the Warren's kitchen. He sorts through the cupboards and pops a candy of every flavor into his mouth, barely pausing to swallow between pieces. Between pieces eight and nine he's shrugging off his coat and tossing his glasses onto the counter while trying to figure out where Jack was hiding.

Burgess would seem too obvious a choice but that might be just the reason to check there first. If not there then maybe Alaska or the mountain tops in Africa, somewhere there's snow that no one thinks about.

He needs to fix this and fix it now.


	4. Flowers and family

It takes three days of guilt, ice bitten paws, and searching before he gets a break. He's racing through Russia when Tellervo calls to him.

“Hello Bunnymund.” Her cheeks dimple when she smiles. “You're in a bit of a hurry, eh?”

“Yeah.” He takes a moment to catch his breath. “How're you?”

“I'm well, thanks. Just visiting Kutkh.” The raven on her shoulder fluffs up his feathers and caws in greeting. “But what are you doing in Russia? It must be rough on your paws.”

Bunny twitches his whiskers in guilt. “Lookin for Jack Frost actually.”

Kutkh laughs delightedly. “Is the little bastard in trouble again? He's got a trickster's spirit in him, that one.”

“Oh I hope you aren't angry at him! He looked rather upset last I saw.”

“When did you see him? Where?”

Tellervo hummed thoughtfully. “On my way here, two days ago? Just on the outskirts of Hyvinkää, I think. Go easy on him, dear.”

“Yes, thank you. I owe you one!” He opens a tunnel and takes off towards Finland. 

He finds Jack sitting in a rocky outcrop and chucking pebbles at a tree. Bunny stands a ways off and tries to think of anything to say that won't make Jack run off. Finally he walks over and sits down next to him silently.

Jack's shoulders tense but he doesn't say anything and he doesn't stop throwing rocks. Bunny looks around them and sighs quietly before nudging Jack's arm gently and pointing. “That's tufted saxifrage. Its a self-pollinating plant, grows in cold, rocky places. Used to treat bladder stones.”

“So?”

“When Pooka are born flowers bloom.” Bunny brushes a paw against the flowers. “We have our own flowers, they're named after us and become our personal seal or sigil. Mine's an aster, my youngest sister's was tufted saxifrage. She loved the cold, couldn't get enough of it.”

Jack pushes his hood down and Bunny takes a deep breath.

“There were the twins, both of them had lilies; a white and yellow one. Hyacinth was my oldest brother, and Marigold was the oldest girl.”

“Past tense?”

“I'm the last.” Bunny turns to look at him. “I'm the only one left, Jack.”

“Oh.”

“My parents, they had hydrangeas and lilly pads.” Bunny closes his eyes. “My daughter had violets. Mountain violets.”

Jack inhales sharply. “Your-”

“I miss them Jack. I miss my family and friends. I miss knowing that there's others of my kind out there.”

“So the chocolate-”

“Can't care when you don't feel.” Jack leans against his side. “I'm sorry, frostbite. I never should have said those things to you.”

“You get it. That doesn't make it okay, but you get it.”

Bunny smiles and rests his head against Jack's. “They would have loved you.”

“Emma'd have loved you too.”


End file.
